SOME readers may recall the time when the fine building housing Spice Merchant, a relatively new Indian restaurant, was the Big Windsor club, a live music institution when Cardiff Bay was simply the Docks.

Like the Bay, the building has been thoroughly renovated and is now smart, even swish, both inside and out. No flock wallpaper here. The menu offers most Indian favourites, but also some more unusual options. For starters, my partner's stuffed chilli pepper with salad was excellent, the filling subtly spicy and texture just right.

My choice - onion bhajis on a bed of chickpeas with salad - would have made a first-class main course. I couldn't resist finishing the earthy, aromatic chickpeas, though the generous portion should have set alarm bells ringing.

When our main courses and side dishes arrived we wondered whether the staff expected us to have guests. My partner's trout in rich sauce filled her plate before adding rice or any trimmings.

We'd ordered side dishes of dhal and spinach with cheese, and each would have made main meals. In fact, the dhal was so good - one of the best we've had anywhere - I almost regretted ordering my chicken jalfrezi. Duty called, though, and I enjoyed the intense, tomato-rich sauce and tender chicken.

When we'd had all we could eat there was enough food left for us to start all over again. We hate waste and we asked for a doggy bag. No problem, and what's more, the food was returned to us in takeaway plastic cartons - full marks.

The price, including drinks, a bottle of very good Chilean red and coffees (and nan bread and popadums) came to just under £60. And we left with another meal in our doggy bag. Paul Traynor